Happy #79: Know what you want. And climb on.

This is another one of those posts where I know what I want to say, essentially. But I'm not certain the story I'm about to tell will say it, effectively. Or exactly.

So stay with me and we'll see how it turns out. :-)

Several years ago my kids and I were rock climbing with family friends. One particular climb I was interested in was the most difficult route I'd ever attempted. But I wanted the challenge. So I roped in.

I had carefully selected my course. There was almost nothing to hold onto for the ascent. And whatever holds there were, were few and far between. Details, I thought.

Climb on.

My friend was belaying me. Neither one of us suspected how difficult that climb would actually turn out to be. Least of all me.

When I was 3/4 of the way to the top, I literally could not go on. I had exhausted my personal strength and energy reserves. I simply did NOT have it in me to continue. I was shaking from the stress of the climb and the fatigue of trying to hang onto the wall with almost nothing to get a hold of. Several times I felt like I was going to fall.

My friend stood below, keeping me tethered, watching everything, giving me just enough rope with just enough slack. So he was also watching when my legs started to shake. He called out to me, "Kathleen, just sit back in the harness and rest. I've got you."

"...sit back in the harness and rest. I've got you."

So I did. I let go of the wall, sat back in the harness, and rested until I had the strength to continue. Then I finished the climb. After I stopped shaking. :-)

Interestingly, the "rest" taught me more about how to finish when something is hard than I ever would have learned had I pushed straight through.

1. I learned that on the way to what we want, things happen that we don't expect.
2. I learned that when those things happen, it's important to have the right person belaying the climb of our journey, someone who is paying attention. To us.
3. I learned the importance of listening.
4. I learned the importance of the pause.
5. I learned the importance of the right WE. And,
6. I learned the importance of hanging out with smart people. :-)

I've reflected on this event several times over the years. It stands out as a hallmark moment for me with regard to pursuing something we want and having the right person there in support.

"I've got you," he said. Those words in those moments of exhaustion were important for me. His suggestion that I rest (rather than shouting out, "YOU CAN DO IT!!", which he also could have done) was wise. And what I needed, which he knew because he was paying attention...

We were a team.

Being happy regardless doesn't mean you're happy no matter what. It just means that regardless of what happens in life, you find a way to look at it or work through it or think about it from a perspective that serves to lift, encourage, and strengthen you. In a way that gives you hope. And in a way that can help you succeed.

Know what you want. Because knowing what you want will help create the right WE, the team you need to succeed. You know, it's that whole "when the student is ready, the teacher appears" thing. They create each other. We show up for each other based on where we are and what we need. Yet another reason to know what you want...

And don't forget to sit back in the harness occasionally. Because that's part of getting to what you want too.

Climb on.